The United States has granted permission for US airlines to begin the first scheduled flights to Cuba in more than five decades.

The US Department of Transportation said that six airlines have been selected for routes to nine Cuban cities other than Havana. The six airlines permitted to fly into Cuba are American, Frontier, JetBlue, Silver Airways, Southwest and Sun Country. Approval is still required by the Cuban government but the carriers say they plan to start selling tickets in the next few weeks.

All flights between the US and Cuba are currently charters. An agreement signed between the two nations in February allows for up to 110 additional flights, more than five times the number of current chartered services.